SHOCKING new figures have revealed that nearly a quarter of new students at Paisley’s university drop out within their first year.

The University of the West of Scotland (UWS) saw no fewer than 565 of its 2,430 new entrants in 2009/2010 – just over 23 per cent – leave before the year was out.

The figure is well above the Scottish rate of 9.4 per cent for the same period and means the uni has the country’s second-highest drop-out rate.

The only university with a higher percentage is the University of the Highlands and Islands – with researchers stressing that uni should be viewed as a “special case” due to its loose collection of campuses dotted throughout the north of Scotland.

The figures were compiled by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) but bosses at Paisley’s uni said they pride themselves on running a “highly inclusive institution,” with a number of successful initiatives up and running to help make sure students feel involved.

A UWS spokesman told the Paisley Daily Express: “This is evidenced by the fact that a significant percentage of our student body is from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

“We recognise that non-continuation rates are not as we would like and we are actively addressing the very complex issue in a number of ways, whilst maintaining high academic standards.

“We are committed to enabling students to combine work and family commitments with university study and offer a variety of part-time courses across our campuses.”

Paisley’s uni has introduced a ‘buddy’ system and attendance monitoring, as well as student support and advice, in a bid to encourage students to stay the course.

The spokesman added: “University research has indicated that non-continuation occurs as a result of a number of factors, many of which are out of the university’s control, such as financial issues and commitments such as family responsibilities.

“Non-continuation is a highly complex issue and will continue to receive the university’s utmost attention.”

News of the high drop-out rate at Paisley’s uni comes after the Students’ Association at UWS launched its Fair Share, Fair Access campaign in a bid to tackle the problem.

Its aim was to highlight the issues with student retention and find a way to help the one in five undergraduates who feel the need to quit as a result of personal problems, financial woes or trouble with their course.

Meanwhile, the University and College Union (UCU) has said extra financial support for students from the Scottish Government is a positive move to try to combat the high drop-out rate.

There has also been praise for work done to increase the number of Scottish students from the poorest backgrounds going to university.

Gordon Watson, UCU Scotland president, said: “It is disappointing that Scotland has such a large drop-out rate and we welcome the commitment from the Scottish Government to increase student support.

“Financial difficulties are a factor for many students and do contribute to drop-out rates. However, universities also need to do more to help students continue with their studies.

“We welcome the slight increase in students with the lowest family incomes attending university but the fact remains that huge swathes of these young people are simply not considering university.

“We need to look at more innovative ways to get the lowest-performing schools to send more students to our universities.”